Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Shares Sold by Stiles Financial Services Inc

Stiles Financial Services Inc cut its position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 6.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,236 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,129 shares during the quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Hormel Foods during the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Hormel Foods by 516.9% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 1,132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Hormel Foods in the third quarter valued at $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Steven J. Lykken acquired 4,904 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $32.47 per share, with a total value of $159,232.88. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president now owns 7,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $230,537. This represents a 223.32 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE HRL opened at $29.23 on Monday. Hormel Foods Co. has a 52-week low of $28.51 and a 52-week high of $36.86. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $31.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.01). Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 10.95% and a net margin of 6.75%. The business had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.14 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.42 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 13th. This is a boost from Hormel Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.97%. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio is 79.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Monday, October 21st. They set an “underperform” rating and a $28.00 target price for the company. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.17.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.